xi, 404 pages ; 25 cm

"So much has changed since the glory days of the civil rights movement - and so much has stayed the same. African Americans command their place at every level of society, from the lunch counter to the college campus to the corporate boardroom - yet the gap between the American middle class and the black poor is as wide as ever. Where can we turn to find the vision that will guide us through these strange and difficult times? Michael Eric Dyson helps us find the answer in our recent past, by resurrecting the true Martin Luther King, Jr." "A private citizen who transformed the world around him, King was arguably the greatest American who ever lived. Yet, as Dyson so poignantly reveals, Martin Luther King, Jr. has disappeared in plain sight. Despite the federal holiday, the postage stamps, and the required reference in history textbooks, King's vitality and complexity have faded from view. Young people do not learn how radical he was, liberals forget that he despaired of whites even as he loved them, and contemporary black leaders tend to ignore the powerful forces that shaped him - the black church, language, and sexuality - thereby obscuring his relevance to black youth and hip-hop culture."--Jacket

Includes bibliographical references (pages 376-394) and index

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